We’ve never been shy about our use of GGPO, but there was still some confusion out there so we’ve decided to make it officially-official and as loudly as humanly possible.

For the uninitiated, GGPO is THE networking library for fighting games. It’s what powers all the PC emulators and whatnot that the hardcore 2D fighting game community thrives on. Despite being so widespread, the rest of the game industry has been slow to adopt GGPO – Skullgirls is only the second commercial product to use it, and the first fighting game.

Los Angeles – April 5, 2011 – Get ready for the future of online play in console fighting games: Skullgirlsis kicking slow connections to the curb! The highly anticipated 2D fighting game from AutumnGames and RevergeLabs will incorporate GroundStorm Studios’ Good Game, Peace Out (GGPO) proprietary networking technology to enhance the game’s online fighting experience. Designed specifically to enable fast-action games online, GGPO’s technology is used as a tool to play classic, old-school fighting games over the internet. Skullgirls will be the first new fighting game to integrate the technology for home consoles, allowing for a smooth, delay-free online gaming experience.

“GGPO’s latency-hiding techniques are specifically designed for the kind of fast-action gameplayfound in Skullgirls,” said GGPO creator and founder of GroundStorm Studios, Tony Cannon. “They eliminate input ‘lag’ to ensure that the moves, combos and reversals you learn will work identically online and off, even over slower network connections.”

GroundStorm Studios’ GGPO networking technology is designed to solve the internet latency issues that often plague online gameplay, allowing it to mirror the experience of playing with friends locally. With GGPO, players across the world can easily play games against each other online as if they were next to each other in the arcade or on the couch at home.

“Skullgirls is really a love letter to fighting game fans new and old, and we are aiming to deliver the best experience possible,” said Jason Donnell, president and COO, Autumn Games. “GGPO is helping us accomplish our goal by enhancing Skullgirls’ fully-featured online mode. At the end of the day, it’s all about delivering a polished, high-quality game, and the integration of GroundStorm’s technology ensures that Skullgirls fans will enjoy the same high-quality action with friends, whether they are a few feet from each other or thousands of miles apart.”

Skullgirls isa new 2D fighting game that puts players in control of fierce female warriors in an extraordinary Dark Deco world. The team is led by renowned fighting game champion Mike “Mike Z” Zaimont and artist Alex “o_8” Ahad, whose work has been featured in many publications, including Lava Punch and Girls of Gaming. Using advanced graphical technology never before achieved in a game of its type, Skullgirls is currently in development for a 2011 release on high-definition home consoles.

Autumn Games is a premier publisher of interactive entertainment focused on partnering with leading creative talent to deliver blockbuster video games and related media through long-term partnerships with a number of the most respected game studios in the industry. Autumn Games’ mission is to support these creative teams in their efforts to make cutting-edge, culturally impactful entertainment.

Reverge Labs, LLC is a new independent developer committed to creating high-quality downloadable games. Founded by CEO Richard Wyckoff and CTO Emil Dotchevski, Reverge draws on combined game development experience of more than 40 years to create unique artistic visions using cutting-edge development techniques.